kenmeister

I *want* to root for Swihart. And Wright. I hope they give me reasons tomorrow night. Swihart needs to hit again, period, or he’s gone. Ironically, Rusney Castillo is mired in Pawtucket despite actually hitting decently at .295. Apparently if they bring him up, they have to pay additional luxury tax. Poor guy. Because otherwise I would say that if Swihart doesn’t start hitting, Castillo and Swihart swap roster spots.

I just looked again at Jalen Beeks’ minor league stats. He looks very deserving of a major league promotion. So the way I see it, Wright’s start tomorrow night is a trial. If he succeeds and Pomeranz fails again, Wright will replace Pomeranz. That still leaves Velazquez, Johnson, and Beeks as legitimate starting options. I’d say that’s pretty good depth. There’s also another AAA pitcher Cuevas that looks pretty good. Now I get it, some AAA pitchers like Henry Owens and Brian Rose look pretty good at AAA but never make it in the majors. But unless you give them a chance, you’ll never know.

That's my recollection too. At any rate, interesting question about Sox-bred starters in our lifetime. Roger Clemens, Aaron Sele, Jon Lester, Clay Bucholz, really not too many that stuck. Many more guys like Felix Doubront who flamed out pretty quick. Long live Juan Pena and Kason Gabbard!

Losing Lester was one of many issues I had with the team's previous management. For what it's worth, I was aghast when they didn't resign Adrian Beltre, though that's going back a few more years. When a player proves they can play at a high level in Boston, I think Boston should make the extra effort to retain them. Not everyone can. So you had losing key players like Lester, Miller, Beltre, and the most inexplicable one in Lackey, taking on players who can't perform well here like Crawford, Sandoval, and Ramirez, resigning players past their prime like Beckett (and let's face it, Pedroia's contract is too long), and not going after key free agents like Scherzer and Nelson Cruz, and it's actually amazing a world series win was obtained this decade. Sandoval and Pedroia's contract will expire soon I think, but Price will be here for a while and as stated up thread, he's already just a #3. By the end of his contract we'll be lucky if he can nail the #5 spot. It is my sincere hope that the bad contracts end, the quality players like Betts are retained, and the critical free agents like JDM continue to be identified and signed. The franchise is definitely going in the right direction and I think the starting pitching depth proves it. Now back to the Pomeranz-out-of-the-rotation watch.

I have to agree. I also think Johnson looks much better as a starter than a reliever, whereas Velazquez and Wright seem pretty good at relieving. But yeah, there's that Beeks guy in AAA that is very impressive. It's a tough call! I don't think you can go wrong with choosing any of those 4 over Pomeranz to take the #5 spot in the rotation.

When Betts returns I'd like to see Beni stay in the leadoff spot.

Heh, rookie mistake that the thread isn't in the subforum. Man I miss David Ortiz.

There really became no reason to play him over Moreland at first. Moreland has better defense and offense at this point. So that leaves DH. Well, with JBJ starting to pull his weight again, JDM will see the bulk of his play at DH, so Ramirez became obsolete. Of course now Betts has missed a bunch of games and we could have used Ramirez, but that's the way it goes.

I always get excited when I see Swihart in the lineup, but he frequently disappoints me. Of course he's far from the only hitless wonder tonight.

Amen! Wright looks pretty good right now too.

... I suspect, unfortunately, this is going to be the conversation everyone is having after tomorrow night's game. I certainly think Wright deserves the chance.

Quote from the newspaper about today's game: Red Sox: LHP Drew Pomeranz (1-2, 6.75) is to be on the mound Thursday for the opener of a four-game series against Houston. He’s 0-1 with a 9.53 ERA in his last three starts and hasn’t gone past four innings. Gulp. Why did his next start have to be against Houston?

Other than the Travis Shaw for Tyler Thornburg 'oops', I'm stoked for this team. I do think Rafael Devers could have used more time in the minors. But who knows Thornburg may come back and contribute.

That said, let's see how Porcello does tonight. I'm starting to get worried about him.

Wow it's crazy how good the Astros rotation is!

I thought it would be nice to have a thread that focuses exclusively on the Sox rotation and prospective starters. We're a third of the way through the season, and here's where things stand: The rotation: Chris Sale - 2.76 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 8 out of 12 quality starts, 75 innings pitched Rick Porcello - 3.74 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 7 out of 11 quality starts, 67.1 innings pitched David Price - 4.04 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 4 out of 11 quality starts, 62.1 innings pitched Eduardo Rodriguez - 4.02 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, 3 out of 10 quality starts, 53.2 innings pitched Drew Pomeranz - 6.75 ERA, 1.88 WHIP, 2 out of 7 quality starts, 32 innings pitched My take: Overall this is a solid rotation. Sale is stronger than most #1s, Porcello is about what you'd expect in a #2, forget what he's being paid Price is solid when viewed as a #3 starter, and E-Rod is better than most #4s. It's our #5 spot where the wheels fall off. At 29 Pomeranz should be at the height of his ability, but he seems a shadow of what he was. Hopefully he improves quickly. Waiting in the wings Hector Velazquez - 2.15 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 29.1 innings pitched Steven Wright - 2.77 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 13 innings pitched Brian Johnson - 4.67 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 27 innings pitched Jalen Beeks (AAA) - 2.74 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 49.1 innings pitched My take: Our rotation depth is impressive. I think any of these four pitchers could take Pomeranz's spot if he continues to fail.

That's me from May 12th. What a difference about 3 weeks makes. This team looks so much better with a JBJ who can be counted on for one big hit and at least one big defensive play a night.

The thread is titled "a realistic view of 2018". I realistically think the Red Sox, as presently constituted, can win it all. That said, are the right personnel in the right spots? I'd really like to see Velazquez move into the starting rotation. I think Betts should hit third. I have a sneaking suspicion Swihart hasn't been given a fair shake. I suspect Moreland playing every day over Hanley at all is the way to go. Once Pedroia comes back, should 3rd remain Devers, or should Holt move there? Questions like that.

And I would like to publicly admit I was wrong about Kelly, who now has a 1.99 ERA. I was wrong. Opening day was a fluke.

Unlike with JBJ, you really can't stick with Hanley through a slump long. He certainly isn't there for his defense.

I know this is crazy, but ... 1) JDM, DH 2) Betts, RF 3) Beni, LF 4) Bogey, SS 5) Moreland / HamRam, 1B 6) Devers, 3B 7) Pedey, 2B 8) Leon / Vazquez, C 9) JBJ, CF

I wish E-Rod and Pomeranz had stayed out a little longer so we could get a better look at Velazquez and Johnson as starters.

JBJ had a great game last night, both offensively and defensively. Maybe it’s a sign of him heating up. Fingers crossed!

True, although I think letting Pomeranz go is fine by me. I'd like to see Velazquez starting.